Prosecutors

Judge rules out death penalty for mass killer over Orange County prosecutors’ misconduct

The worst mass killer in the history of Orange County, California, will not get the death penalty because of systemic misconduct by the district attorney’s office and sheriff’s department, a judge ruled Friday morning. The Orange County Register, OC Weekly and Southern California Public Radio say Judge Thomas Goethals removed…

Aug 18, 2017 3:01 PM CDT

Justice Department creates in-house team to monitor accuracy of forensic testimony in criminal cases

The Justice Department has created an internal team led by a former state prosecutor to monitor the accuracy of forensic testimony in criminal cases over an outside advisory group of experts and stakeholders, which the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) described as a victory “over academics and defense attorneys” The…

Aug 9, 2017 12:21 PM CDT

Indicted ex-congressman claims government lawyers made inappropriate inquiries about his sex life

A dismissal motion filed Tuesday on behalf of former U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock claims federal prosecutors and agents asked inappropriate questions about his sexuality and sex life, causing potential prejudice through “salacious innuendo.” The motion claims prosecutors questioned at least a dozen witnesses about Schock’s sleeping arrangements and relationships and…

Aug 2, 2017 9:51 AM CDT

Unsealed document describes cozy relationship between Chicago cops and prosecutors

In a document unsealed on Wednesday, a former Cook County, Illinois, prosecutor described how Chicago police played suspects against each other in a 1994 case and pressured prosecutors to move cases along. Former assistant State’s Attorney Terence Johnson, who worked in the felony review unit, told the FBI in a…

Jul 20, 2017 10:52 AM CDT

Orlando cops pull over black state attorney, and the video goes viral

Body cam video of Orlando police officers pulling over Florida’s only black state attorney has gone viral after some commentators suggested the stop could have been due to racial profiling. Orange-Osceola State Attorney Aramis Ayala, who has been in the news for refusing to seek the death penalty, was on…

Jul 13, 2017 11:16 AM CDT

Orange County sheriff: There’s no jailhouse informant program, but some deputies have misbehaved

The elected sheriff of Orange County, California, testified under oath Wednesday that although some of her deputies have violated defendants’ constitutional rights, there is no organized jailhouse informant program. The Orange County Register, Los Angeles Times and Voice of OC have stories. The testimony was the first time a court…

Jul 6, 2017 5:01 PM CDT

Philadelphia DA pleads guilty and resigns during corruption trial

Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams pleaded guilty to a single count related to accepting bribes on Thursday, putting an end to his federal corruption trial. Williams pleaded guilty in exchange for dismissal of 28 of the 29 charges against him, report the Legal Intelligencer (sub. req.) and Philly.com. He submitted…

Jun 30, 2017 7:00 AM CDT

Reports that family of Trump lawyer Sekulow got millions from his nonprofit leads to states’ review

Two state attorneys general say they will review the operations of a group run by lawyer Jay Sekulow following reports that the nonprofit funneled millions of dollars to the lawyer, his family and businesses they run. North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman told…

Jun 29, 2017 10:31 AM CDT

Federal prosecutor admits she listened to recordings of attorney-client conversations, filing says

A federal prosecutor is no longer employed by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Kansas City, Kansas, after admitting to her supervisor that she had listened to recorded attorney-client conversations, according to court documents. The special assistant prosecutor, Erin Tomasic, admitted that she had listened to multiple recorded conversations between a…

Jun 29, 2017 7:00 AM CDT

Grand jury calls jail informant program a ‘myth,’ but testimony in related case contradicts that

One day after a grand jury report said there was no officially sanctioned jailhouse informant program in Orange County, California, testimony in a related case said otherwise, the Orange County Register reported last week. The grand jury report (PDF), entitled “The Myth of the Orange County Jailhouse Informant Program,” said…

Jun 19, 2017 4:01 PM CDT

In Flint water crisis, could involuntary manslaughter charges actually lead to prison time?

Last week, Michigan’s top prosecutor announced that five officials, including the state’s Health Department head Nick Lyon, will face charges of involuntary manslaughter for a death resulting from the Flint water crisis. It’s a move virtually unheard of in modern American history; legal experts couldn’t point to a single case…

Jun 19, 2017 2:38 PM CDT

Trump nominates first group of U.S. attorney replacements; some have BigLaw connections

President Donald Trump has announced “a first wave” of U.S. attorney nominees who share his vision for “making America safe again,” according to a White House release on Monday. The eight nominees reflect the difficulty of getting “blue-slip” approval from Democratic home state senators, Politico reports. Six of the nominees…

Jun 13, 2017 11:53 AM CDT

Nevada passes modest measures to curb prosecutorial misconduct

Two Nevada laws designed to counter bad behavior by state prosecutors, or at least give some defendants the ability to undo troubling plea agreements, passed last week, although one was substantially gutted under pressure from prosecutors and police. The legislative debate over both laws mentioned the case of Fred Steese,…

Jun 2, 2017 12:35 PM CDT

Sessions reportedly did not disclose meetings with Russians on security clearance application

U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions met with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak at least twice in 2016, the Department of Justice says, but he did not disclose those meetings when he applied for a security clearance, CNN reported Wednesday.

May 24, 2017 6:14 PM CDT

Prosecutors in Manhattan deal with unsavory pests and dilapidated offices

Conditions at the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan are so bad that an inmate who sat in one of its conference rooms asked to hold the next meeting at the prison, where it is more comfortable, according to a former prosecutor who worked at the office. The office has coped…

May 24, 2017 7:00 AM CDT